There are bold career moves, and then there’s sending a cold email to Google co-founder Sergey Brin at 3 a.m. For Sameer Samat, now President of the Android Ecosystem at Google, this daring nocturnal message turned out to be the digital equivalent of striking gold.
Samat, then an ambitious technologist without expecting what was awaiting, decided not to wait for business hours to take his shot.
At that time, he admired Sergey Brin and decided to take his advice via mail, asking:
Whether to pursue his startup or attend graduate school?
And THAT changed everything, even Sameer’s life and career.
The question may seem simple to some, but for some, it is like choosing a road that they won’t be able to return from. For some, it may not be easy to turn back and choose the second option.
However, despite the time, i.e., 3 am, Sergey replied within a minute, inviting Samat to Google’s office.
Then what, he went. Obviously!
The conversation was informational but at the same time transformative, where Sergey introduced him to several engineers at the company. That was a sort of secret interview for him. This was followed by a job offer, which he politely declined.
WHY?
Because the meeting’s agenda was achieved: Sameer Samat made the decision that he would focus on building his startup, Mohomine.
Even after his decline, Sergey supported him and his initiative and introduced him to investors (some of them funded in Samat’s company). Eventually, Kofax (now Tungsten Automation) acquired Mohomine.
In 2008, Sameer joined Google as Director of Product Management, and over the years, he rose through the ranks: Vice President of Product Management for Google Shopping, and later General Manager for both Google Shopping and Travel.
In 2015, he took a break and joined Jawbone as president, but after 9 months, he returned with a new mission, and this time, he was leading Google’s Android Ecosystem as VP/GM.
For job hunters and dreamers everywhere, Samat’s experience offers two valuable takeaways: Don’t be afraid to reach out (no matter the hour), and sometimes the most important messages are sent at the least “appropriate” times. As for Sergey Brin, here’s hoping he didn’t have his phone on loud.
